A Night of Freedom
by IkLachomZwaartekracht
Summary: Once a year, a certain princess sneaks out for a little bit of fun. But it doesn't always go to plan.


AN: Yes, yes, I don't own Frozen, everything belongs to Disney, yes, yes.

I am so unbelievably excited for this movie. So I release my feelings through fanfiction!

Set when Elsa is 14 and Anna is 11.

* * *

Elsa's eyes fluttered open.

She sat up in bed, staring eagerly at the window. Outside, a steady flurry of snowflakes fell silently. Grinning, the eldest princess threw back the covers and pulled the boots she had stored under her bed for this moment onto her feet. It was not truly necessary, but she wrapped her dressing gown around herself, tying it securely. After loosely braiding her long, blonde hair, she was ready.

Every year, in the depths of winter, Elsa would sneak away from the palace in the dead of night. All year she would be good, she would obey the rules, all year, except for this one night of freedom. On that one night, she would use her powers as she wished. And her fourteenth year would be no different.

Defying the rules did not come naturally to the princess, and she could feel her heart beat in her throat. But she was more excited than frightened as she finally saw that the coast was clear, and ran across the snowy plains. She made sure to cover her tracks with more fresh snow. No one had seen her go, of that she was sure, but better safe than sorry.

She was running at full pelt, adrenaline rushing through her veins, a laugh whipped away by the wind. It did not take long for her to lose sight of Arendelle all together. She stopped, and looked back on the way she had come, her breaths short and sharp. A stitch was beginning to ache in her side, but Elsa didn't care. Hands on her thighs, she regained her breath after some moments and a mischievous grin widened on her face. Holding out one hand, sparks and flakes flew from her palm, making a perfect miniature Arendelle. Namely, the castle. It had taken her some time to be able to make sculptures, but now she could. She inhabited the tiny version of her home with even tinier people, kneeling down beside it to better see inside. After a while, she grew bored of it and turned her attention instead to seeing what she could do with ice. Over the years, she had mainly kept her powers to snow, but she was curious.

Ice was harder. And in more than one sense. During her attempts, her braid had unravelled but she wasn't bothered by it. Brow furrowed, Elsa concentrated on making it as clear as possible, but cracks kept creeping through her creations. Frustrated, she slammed her palm against a particularly tall one, not realising quite how delicate it was. Before she knew what was happening, a large chunk fell and hit her head and shoulder. She fell to her knees, the world seeming to swirl in front of her eyes, the pain throbbing in her shoulder as she fell forward and blacked out.

It didn't take long for someone to find her. A couple of ice harvesters, heading out early to work, saw Elsa's sculptures she had made during the night and soon found the unconscious princess. Eyes wide, they abandoned their tools and carried her safely back to Arendelle, her wintery hair whipping around in the wind that had picked up.

* * *

The king and queen were awoken by a hammering on their door, and exchanging confused, and understandably sleepy glances, they rose to answer.

The maid responsible for said banging was panting, as though she had run some way.

"Majesties, it's the princess, you need to come quickly!" she said in a hurry, motioning for them to follow.

Quickly moving to walk briskly after the girl, the king murmured, "You said princess...which one?"

"Princess Elsa, majesty," she replied over her shoulder.

She led them to the library, where they found the fire roaring, and their eldest daughter limp on the sofa that had been pulled before the flames. The queen rushed to her child's side, sitting beside her and taking her hand. The coldness of the crown princess's hands always surprised and frightened her a little. Ever since the incident some six years previously, Elsa and her mother had drifted apart, while her relationship with her father had only strengthened.

The king ordered for a doctor and quickly questioned the men who had brought Elsa home, before forcing everyone from the room and closing the door. He joined his wife, kneeling beside her, and stroking the loose strands of her near white hair from his daughter's face. Feeling a stickiness, he drew away to find blood on his fingertips. He looked up at his wife, hearing her gasp of shock and seeing tears forming in her eyes.

"Head wounds are known to bleed more, it's probably nothing." He was not sure who he was reassuring – the queen or himself.

A knock at the door interrupted them and their doctor entered. He set to work, the king pulling the queen into his arms as they watched. He bandaged up Elsa's shoulder and checked her head, telling them it should heal quickly. Soon he was done and stood up, turning to face the monarchs with a quick bow.

"Bed rest is the best thing for now," he told them. "She should come around soon. I think it was more shock than her head that has caused her to fall unconscious. She should rest that shoulder for a few weeks." Giving them a reassuring smile, he added, "The princess will be just fine. Don't worry."

The pair watched as the man left the room. Tucking his arms under Elsa's shoulders and knees, the king plucked her from the sofa, being gentle to not disturb her injury. The queen opened the door for him and together, they walked to Elsa's room in silence. While the queen was opening this door, she spotted their younger daughter wandering the hall, rubbing her eyes.

"Mama?" she asked, spotting her parents. It was then she saw Elsa's limp form hanging from the king's arms. "Did...did something happen to Elsa?"

"Go back to bed, Anna," the queen said calmly. "It's noting to worry about. Elsa will be fine."

She walked the smaller girl back to her room to tuck her back in while the king did the same for Elsa. He sat on the edge of her bed, the same way the queen had sat in the library, taking one of her hands in his. He didn't even notice his wife returning to the doorway.

"Anna will soon be asleep again," she told him. Taking in the pair, she said, "You're staying here aren't you?"

"Yes," he replied in a hushed tone. "At least until she wakes. I – Well, I don't want her to wake up alone."

She smiled. "Of course. See you soon, love. I'll come and check up on her in a few hours."

And with that, she returned to their room, closing the door behind her.

Once she had gone, he returned his attentions to his daughter. What in heaven's name had she been doing outside in the middle of the night? Well, he could ask once she was awake.

It didn't take long for him to grow stiff in the position he was in. Kicking off his slippers, he crawled up next to Elsa, pulling her into his lap, as he would when she was a very small child. He leant on the headboard, his daughter's head on his chest and he twisted a piece of her hair around his finger. It didn't take long for him to drift off with her, his arms around her protectively.

What woke him up, some time later, was the feeling of movement and then a quiet yelp of pain. His eyes immediately opened to find Elsa trying to wiggle out of his arms, unsuccessfully. She was not yet fully awake, and he pulled her closer again.

"Elsa?" he murmured.

Her eyes then opened and she looked up at him, guilt written across her face.

"Papa?" she whispered back.

He sat up a bit more, delicately disentangling himself from her, without hurting her shoulder more, until he was facing her, rather than behind her.

"Elsa, what happened?"

Pulling the sheets up under her chin, the princess refused to meet her father's eyes. Her fingers played with the edges as she thought.

"_Elsa._"

"I was...I went...I was using my powers," she finally muttered. "I thought I would be fine, I mean it's already winter, and I've done it be-" she caught herself before she finished her sentence, but it was too late. The king knew what she had been about to say. Elsa hid her mouth below the edge of the blanket, waiting for her father's reaction.

"We've spoken about this getting out of hand before, haven't we?" He waited for her to nod. "You are never to do this again, do you understand me?" Another nod. "First, your sister, and now you've hurt yourself." He sighed before continuing. "I just don't want to see my loved ones get hurt."

Tears were brimming in her eyes as she tried to keep herself in check. But inevitably, the ice crystals began to form on the blanket she was holding. This did not help matters, and the tears rolled silently down her face. The king stood from his position on her bed and looked around, soon spotting what he was looking for. Returning to his earlier spot, he pulled her hands to him, slipping her gloves on them, before pulling her close to his chest.

"It's alright," he murmured, stroking her hair. "Just calm down, now."

Elsa concentrated on steadying her breathing, forcing the tears to stop.

"I'm sorry," she whispered into the fabric of her father's dressing gown.

"I know," he whispered back.

* * *

Elsa never did have her night of freedom again. She wouldn't dare. Besides, the king and queen employ more guards at the entrances and exits of the castle. They thought she hadn't noticed, but the princess most certainly had. They needn't have bothered; she simply kept herself locked away even more than before. Anna never did get an explanation of what had happened that night, no matter how much she asked. She just became more and more aware of her sister hiding herself even more.

It didn't stop her from knocking though.


End file.
